The Peach Bloosom Fan

Preface

Jr \ Preface This story concerns a young scholar and a courtesan who loved and lived in th e last days of the Ming Dynasty when their world fell apart. The final collapse of the Ming i s a kaleidoscope throug h whic h on e perceive s honou r an d corruption , patriotism an d disloyalty , friendship s an d betrayal , publi c spiritednes s an d unrestrained rapacity , cruelt y an d als o kindness. It is at once a romance an d a history movingly told. Above all, it argues convincingly that the noble ideals of man must surely survive, even as his life on earth is shattered. In 1948 Mr Gu Sifan (gtff j|5, alias Nanfang Fan | ^ ^ | g) publishe d his novel The New Peach Blossom Fan (0f$fe?bJif) > based on the play by Kong Shangren . His novel has been published in Taiwan under the title of The Peach Blossom Fan Gu was born on 4 March 191 6 in Zhejiang Province. In 1949 he worked as a journalist in Shanghai. In 195 1 he was a war correspondent i n Korea. He is now the Vice-Chairman of the China Writers' Association, Zhejiang Branch, and lives in Hangzhou City. He is the author of many books and articles. The play was written by a scholar-official, Kon g Shangren (JLjnHi ) ° f th e early Qing Dynasty, in the form of verses. Kong was born in 1648, in the fifth yea r of th e Reig n o f th e firs t Manch u Emperor , Shunzh i (jl|jf^) . H e wa s a 64t h generation direct descendant of Confucius . In 1684 Emperor Kangxi (JjftJSi) travelle d to the rice-growing region, south of the Yangzi River. In the winter of that year, he was on his return to the capital via Shandong Province. When he arrived at Confucius' birthplac e in the province, he wen t t o pay his respects at th e sage's temple. Kong was chosen t o deliver a vu The Peach Blossom Fan lecture on the classics before the throne. So impressed was the Emperor that Kong was appointed a Doctor of the Imperial Academy of Learning. Four years later he accompanied the Vice-President of the Board of Works to oversee the dredging of the Yellow River. It was not until the winter of 1689 that he wa s able to return t o Beijing. Upon his return he continue d t o work in th e Imperial Academy. In 1694, he joined the Board of Population and Revenue as Assistant Secretary. In 1699 , he was promoted to Secretary in the same Board, in charge of affairs i n the Guangdong Province. In th e summe r o f the sam e year, he publishe d th e pla y Taohua Shan (Th e Peach Blossom Fan), which he had been working on for over ten years, after thre e revisions. One evening in the autumn of that year Emperor Kangxi sent a member of the imperial household to ask Kong for a copy of the play. In some haste Kong found a copy at Zhan g Pingzhou' s (3|PP"ffi ) hom e an d had i t delivered i n th e middle of the night. Unfortunately, th e play incurred th e displeasure of the Emperor because i t spoke approvingly of officials loya l to the Ming Dynasty and sarcastically of the traitorous generals who surrendered to the Manchus. In the spring of the following year Kong was dismissed from office . Kong remained i n the capital for two more years after hi s dismissal. In th e winter of 1702 he returned to live in his native village in Shandong Province. He died in the spring of 1718, aged 70. The Peach Blossom Fan is a historical play, based on facts which occurred i n the last year of the Ming Dynasty (1644-1645) . In an introductory remark, Kong wrote: As to the achievements and failures of the government, and the assembly and dispersal of the literati, nothing is fictitious and all have been verified As to the love affairs of men and women, and the casual conversations between guests, I might have indulged in some elaboration, but even these are not entirely fabricated . According t o history th e hero of the story , Hou Fangyu ({^c^fM) , an d th e heroine Li the Perfumed Lad y (^;ff | | ) wer...